6 from 6 turns into 7 from 7 - the adventure continues apace in North London as the gap widens between third and fourth. Whilst champions league rivals Spurs and Chelsea played out a dreary goalless draw in West London, Arsenal comfortably saw off a poor Aston Villa team to run out 3-0 winners in a game remarkable largely for the absence of one Robin Van Persie on the score sheet

Villa came to North London off the back of one win in their last six matches, but they still had the best record of any visiting team at the emirates, as well as having scored 2 goals in an FA cup fixture between the two teams in January (albeit in a match they lost 3-2), so nothing was certain. Wenger's team selection was nothing if not unsurprising: Van Persie would be accompanied up top by Walcott and Gervinho, whilst Arteta and Rosicky would play behind them. Song would shield a back four of Gibbs, Sagna, Vermaelen and Djourou, Koscielny unfortunately ruled out during the warm up. Alex Mcleish meanwhile chose Agbonlahor and Albrighton to flank Emile Heskey, the premier league's least competent striker, in a front three which someone in public relations might call 'quick, powerful and dynamic' but the rest of us would probably just call 'crap'.

Prior to Sunday the Villa defence had in fact conceded 4 goals fewer than Arsenal, but they'll face few sterner tests than they did on Saturday: the home team started brightly and it quickly became apparent that their movement and one touch passing were too much for the visitors to cope with. Arsenal's efforts were rewarded after just sixteen minutes; the rampaging Kieran Gibbs received a pass from Gervinho inside the box, and with the Villa defenders inexplicably failing to follow his run he had a clean sight of goal. His shot was turned into the net by the hapless Shay Given who one sensed knew his afternoon was only going to get worse. The lead was doubled nine minutes later after Walcott controlled an excellent through ball from the increasingly influential Alex Song and the winger slotted into the corner. Earlier in the season Arsenal seemed to make it their business to piss away leads in the most outrageous ways possible, but we seem to look more and more comfortable defending them these days, and at 2-0 the game seemed sewn up, even with 65 minutes still to play. A third was finally added in the dying moments of the third half when a Mikel Arteta free kick flew in from something like 30 yards out and few would argue that it was any more than Arsenal deserved.

Villa threatened just twice during the entire game; first at 0-0 when Marc Albrighton was allowed to run almost the length of the pitch following a clearance from a corner, but his shot fizzed just over, and again in the 69th minute when the returning André Santos gifted the ball to Andreas Weimann but his ball across the 6 yard box went untouched. The Arsenal defence deserve some credit for picking up a clean sheet in a campaign that has seen alarmingly few of them, but truth be told the game seemed more like an exercise in damage limitation for Mcleish's men than an opportunity to pick up points.

For once we needn't dwell on the negatives because there were none. Instead we can bask in the success of a team whose momentum continues to build when they need it most. The only cloud on the horizon are the absence of Laurent Koscielny although, according the most news sources the defender should be fit for next weekend, when we travel to Loftus Road to battle one of Wenger's nemeses in Mark Hughes and his scrappy band of relegation battlers, QPR. For the first time in a long time there are no players misfiring, no mystery injuries to worry about and with the return of André Santos we once again have cover at full back; moreover in Rosicky mk. 2 we practically have a whole new player in the midfield. The law of averages would suggest that we're due a stroke of bad luck, but maybe for once things will keep going right for us. If results go our way, in a fortnight's time we could be just 6 points off Man City. But that's getting a little ahead of ourselves...isn't it?

P.S. Following Arshavin's relocation to Zenit, I'll be starting anew over at http://arsenesnose.blogspot.co.uk/

There's not an awful lot I can say about last night's game, watching as I was on an unreliable internet stream from Portugal, but I'll say what I can. Arsenal are now in third and that itself is worthy of a blog, so here goes.

On the 25th February, the gap between Arsenal and Spurs stood at 2 places, 10 points and 11 goals. On the 22nd March, it stands at 1 place, 1 point and 1 goal. The other way around. In the last 6 league games Arsenal have taken 18 points from a possible 18, while Spurs have taken 5. Chelsea have gained 7. Change is afoot.

Last year third place would have felt like failure; if Vermaelen and Van Persie had stayed fit for most of the season we might have sustained our title challenge until the last day, but instead we crumbled and the towel was thrown in a whole lot earlier than was appropriate. So early, in fact, that Man City nicked third place and we had to fight with Udinese to avoid competing at the kids' table of European football. This season third feels like silverware; success is relative.

Such were our losses over the Summer that a champion's league spot next season was as much as we could realistically hope for. Keeping the squad healthy as well as challenging for silverware (and that includes league and FA cups) was simply not feasible, especially when the back four kept imploding in a shower of dodgy ankles and torn ligaments. Liverpool present an excellent case study in terms of what happens when you value domestic competitions too highly. Cardiff's penalty takers gift-wrapped the carling cup in the shootout, and Liverpool will again travel to Wembley for an FA cup final shortly, but in the league they are 12 points adrift of the champions league spots, and only three clear of newly promoted Swansea. All of this after a huge outlay of funds during the last three transfer windows. 'King' Kenny may be beloved by the Kop, but even if he wins the FA cup too it will still be seen as a paltry return given the war chest he has been allowed to command. Also he has a face like a slapped arse. No one figured Arsene would have his team 13 points clear of Dalglish's boys at this point in the season, but here we are.

Success is relative.

6 wins from 6 is a phrase worth savouring, but what lies ahead? Difficult ties remain including fixtures against City, Chelsea and Stoke, but the first two will be in the comfort of North London. If we can win 5 of the next 9, avoiding defeat against Chelsea, then we should have champions league football wrapped up. The smart money's on us crossing the finish line ahead of Spurs and Chelsea, but the last two months are a pretty definitive example of how quickly seasons can be turned on their heads.

I feel like a broken record discussing mental strength as it seems to alternate between our greatest asset and our biggest weakness; we've either got it by the bucket-load, or it's completely drained away. Milan away, classic example of a complete mental collapse; Milan at home, team spirit and resilience out the ying yang. 6 wins on the spin, however, suggests that Wenger's instilled some belief in these players, especially given that 4 of them were come-from-behinds. Everton away was a pretty good example of how things have improved in the last month.

Traditionally this season Arsenal have come limping out of the blocks but last night they were flying. The ball was moved quickly and incisively, opposition players were closed down, and the home team barely had time to compose themselves before they were 1 down, courtesy of a Thomas Vermaelen header. Everton are a good team at home, and have beaten Spurs, Chelsea and City at Goodison in the past couple of months, so inevitably they settled down and started passing the ball. They should have had a goal too, but the linesman incorrectly flagged Royston Drenthe offside when he was clearly on.

If I had a nickel for every time I saw an Arsenal team take the lead in a game like this only to crumble defensively and concede either one or two late goals I'd be a rich man - not last night though. After the break, Everton largely failed to trouble a resilient back four which has only conceded four goals in 8 games when they've all been fit enough to start together. With just 9 games to go the importance of three points last night cannot be stressed enough. All around us teams are feeling the strain of a long and difficult season, but the Gunners seem to have found another gear, and it's looking like the difference between the Champions League and island of misfit teams (sorry, Europa League). This weekend we welcome our brothers from Birmingham, the mighty Aston Villa, to the emirates. Let them feel the righteous lash of Arsene Wenger's hickory switch.

There's two kinds of performances that make the job of the blogger easy. The truly great (think Barcelona at the Emirates last season) and the truly awful, (think Milan, tonight). When your team throw in the towel after a quarter of an hour in a Champions League last sixteen tie, the words come a little easier.

Milan are obviously a talented team - Italian football is no longer in the doldrums (see seventh placed Napoli's qualification from their Champions League group ahead of Manchester City) and Massimiliano Allegri's team lead the league. With the criminally underrated Zlatan Ibrahimovic leading the line, and Brazil's first choice centre back Tiago Silva marshaling the defence, they're a fundamentally solid outfit, if not a flashy one. Their draw at the Nou Camp was no fluke, a result of good counter attacking and well executed fundamentals, and should have served as an excellent warning to the Gunners. Arsenal have played badly this season, making bad teams look good and good teams look great, but the performance against Milan was breathtakingly dire. After a really pleasing fightback against a resurgent Sunderland on the weekend, and against significantly better opposition, it was therefore surprising to see the Gunners treat the first half at the San Siro like a training match.

Wenger seemingly predicted that the game being contested in the midfield as opposed to the wings, dropping Oxlade-Chamberlain in favour of Rosicky: the Czech is happy to drift deeper and involve himself in the link up play and his versatility should have come in handy. Ramsey reclaimed his place in midfield, while Kieran Gibbs started at left back for the first time since October. As it happened it didn't really matter who started out on the left wing because Arsenal's front three saw so little of the ball in the first half. Milan pressured the Gunners midfield and marked the forwards tightly, and so we were privy to another masterful display of side to side passing - it's like Denilson, master of the sideways pass, never left. While Arsenal offered absolutely nothing in the final third, the same could not be said for Milan who looked incisive right from the first whistle.

With Van Bommel keeping the midfield ticking over and Ibrahimovic the focal point for the attack, the home team moved the ball quickly and intelligently. Arsenal often look short of ideas against well organised teams, and in those games the defence must be relied upon to keep the game competitive until the attack finds its groove. Not so tonight; players were consistently allowed time and space to pick passes, knock in crosses or even take shots. No one was closing down, no one was doubling up on wingers, the full backs were consistently outnumbered by Milan players, headers were going uncontested; I really cannot overstate how poor Arsenal were defensively in this game.

Mindblowingly bad.

Both of Milan's first half goals were well taken: FA Cup final penalty misser Kevin Prince Boateng smashed a brilliant shot beyond Szczesny after fifteen minutes, but why he was allowed the space to do so? Robinho's header after half an hour was well directed, but why did Sagna simply stop following Ibrahimovic's run down the wing when the linesman failed to flag for offside? It wasn't like we were undone by individual pieces of skill and 25 yard piledrivers into the top corner; the Arsenal players beat themselves by failing to execute fundamentally simple tasks. Words cannot express how disappointing it was to watch a premier league team play like a bunch of Sunday league amateurs.

The sides went in at half time at 2-0, the only question worth asking was not whether Arsenal would get back into the game, but how badly they would be beaten. Vermaelen's slip allowed Robinho to make it three from the edge of the area and Djourou, (replacing the injured Koscielny) continued to make a case for him to be banned from wearing an Arsenal shirt ever again when he was once again caught too square to a striker and dragged down Ibrahimovic in the box. The Swedish striker converted the penalty, and frankly it was no less than the Italian team deserved.

Arsenal offered a little more in the second half, as first Henry and then Oxlade-Chamberlain were thrown into the fray, but this was more a consequence of Milan easing off than anything else. Nothing short of a miracle will see the Gunners progress now, and Wenger would be well-advised to focus his efforts on the fight for fourth place. He must address the problems highlighted in Milan tonight however. Van Persie, I feel, owes his club a debt of loyalty for consistently renewing his contract despite his many injuries, but he can't be expected to stay at a team that not only cannot match his expectations, but fails to even come close. The Dutchman, along with Szczesny and the two second half substitutes, were the only players to play at a level even close to what you'd call acceptable, and Wenger must identify why his players looked so out of their depth.

Arsenal were always going to struggle against a fundamentally better team, but it seems a real shame that Theirry Henry should bid farewell to the club surrounded by such abject mediocrity. He deserved better, and so did the fans. Sunderland are the opposition once again on the weekend, and victory would see us through to the quarter finals of the FA cup. Gervinho will be back from the African cup of nations where, as is to be expected of an Arsenal player, he missed the decisive penalty in the final. Wenger can now put the consistently useless Walcott on the bench and give his starting spot to the Ox. If the Frenchman is to be at the club next season, and I sincerely hope he will, his players will have to stop phoning it in. We're edging closer to the precipice week by week; for god's sake, someone throw us a lifeline.

(Buck your ideas up son)

Let's face it - things are not looking good for Arsenal. The Gunner's slide into mediocrity continued last night with a piss-poor performance against a Bolton side now just two points clear of the relegation zone. The gap between us and fourth remained at 5 points thanks to Chelsea's draw at Swansea, but two teams, namely Newcastle and Liverpool, now occupy the space between us and them. To put that into perspective, that's a Liverpool team with lumbering man-child Andy Carroll up front and a Newcastle team managed by Alan 'he's absolutely raped him' Pardew. Can things get any worse?

Well yes, as apparently Jack Wilshere looks to set to miss the rest of the season. The young midfielder aggravated his injury in training and will almost certainly not feature in the league. Wenger must now rely entirely on the midfield trio of Song, Ramsey and Arteta, an alarming prospect given Ramsey's tendency to play as if he's just returned from his year long absence (ie tentatively and sloppily) and Song's apparent disinclination to provide any meaningful contribution at either end of the pitch. Arteta continues to provide the only spark in the middle, although his physical limitations prevent him from taking the game to the opposition in the way that someone younger and quicker might, say a Fabregas or a Nasri.

Meanwhile Van Persie continues to look like a man who feels the burden of expectation upon his shoulders - with Gervinho in Africa his support up front at Bolton came in the shape of the inexperienced Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and the woefully inefficient Theo Walcott. The latter, who can can only really be allowed one more season to show why he should be allowed to play for Arsenal, looks less and less like the player who beat three Chelsea defenders to score at Stamford Bridge in October. The paucity of quality in the team was reflected by the rather abject performance on the pitch. Opportunities were created in a first half which Arsenal largely dominated - Ramsey failed to make sufficient contact on a Van Persie through-ball, and Walcott unsurprisingly squandered a one on one after he was played in by Oxlade-Chamberlain. David Ngog missed a similar chance at the other end but Arsenal should have been ahead at the break.

After half time the roles were reversed. The Gunners best chance came in the shape of a cross from the returning (and ever-reliable) Sagna, which Van Persie could only crash against the post. The Dutchman hit the woodwork again with a Bergkamp style lob from close range, and Oxlade-Chamberlain fired just over from 25 yards, but for much of the second half the ball was in and around the Arsenal penalty area. Despite creating only half chances, the home side were almost rewarded for their hard work right at the death when Szczesny brought down Mark Davies in the box but Chris Foy gave the goalkeeper the benefit of the doubt.

The momentum gathered during a dominant second half performance against Villa on the weekend failed to spill over into the next game, and instead Arsenal demonstrated the lack of incisiveness and ability to convert chances that has plagued their game since late December. Van Persie's task must seem increasingly thankless and futile if the other strikers consistently fail to alleviate his workload, and rumours linking him with a Summer move to Spain seem to be gathering momentum. Moreover the midfield must start creating the chances that their possession merits. Walcott and Ramsey, playing as they are, would probably look out of their depth in promotion chasing Championship sides.

What's to be done about a run of form that makes Champions League football next season look more and more unlikely? Well with the transfer window shut (and our only purchase a young German from Dortmund without a single senior appearance to his name) the only thing we can do is to hope that the player we have can turn things around. The talent is obviously there, as evidenced by the fact that the team went from 17th to 5th in about a month earlier in the season. When Gibbs and Santos return we will at least have two bona fide full backs, which will allow Vermaelen to move back into the middle to partner Kosielny, who has, except for Van Persie, been Arsenal's standout player this season. Oxlade-Chamberlain, who looks to have displaced Arshavin in the pecking order (much to the pleasure of most Arsenal fans with the exception of those select few who have honoured him by naming their blogs after him) looks like the player that Walcott always wanted to be: fast, strong, tricky and with a fierce shot. As his general game improves (and with the return of our actual fullbacks) we should have a genuine wide threat for the first time this season. Above all else though, players like Ramsey, Song and Walcott have to start making a positive contribution. Van Persie cannot carry this team for an entire season, and shouldn't be expected to. Ultimately the difference between playing in Europe on a Tuesday night or a Thursday will ultimately rest in their hands.

Hello all, long time no see.

Much has changed since I last wrote: Robin Van Persie has finally developed the reputation he deserves, Wenger's head is no longer on the chopping block and most importantly Arsenal are back in the hunt for a place amongst Europe's elite (and Manchester City) in next season's Champions League.

At the start of October we were dead and buried. Lingering just above the relegation zone, it would take a miracle get us anywhere near the top four. Well we found a miracle and his name is Robin. The striker has 20 goals already this season in all competitions, and two more in the league would see him match Alan Shearer's record for league goals in a calender year. A truly remarkable achievement for someone who's legs are part flesh and bone and part Ming vase.

The striker's fantastic haul only tells part of the story. Equally astonishing was that pundits and fans alike expected an Arsenal team that was almost 50% new players to not play like a team that was almost 50% new players; when the new recruits were unsurprisingly unable to blend seamlessly into a team with a technically difficult style of play everyone threw their hands up in despair. Mertesacker, Santos, Arteta, Gervinho, Jenkinson and Benayoun have all been thrown into the first team this season and have had little time to settle. Really it should have surprised absolutely no one that when they finally did have time to learn how to play as a team Arsenal's form would see a drastic improvement. There's life in the old dog yet.

Since that loss to Spurs way back in October, Arsenal have lost just once (discounting the 'who gives a carling cup' and a meaningless tie in Athens). We now sit just one point off the Champions League places, and while the title seems destined for Manchester, the race for third and fourth places is well and truly on. Ostensibly a four horse race, I think Liverpool can be discounted on the grounds that they are rubbish. Dalglish has them playing in a way that serves as a constant reminder that he had not managed a team in ten years before taking on the job, and if the Suarez racism case has a silver lining for Kenny it's surely that it serves to distract the press from the fact that all of his other signings are quite shit (and he overpaid for all of them). If they were going to stand any chance of finishing fourth, it probably involved Suarez being able to play in all of their remaining games.

That leaves us with Chelsea and Spurs. As it stands, Spurs look likelier to finish first than fifth; keeping Modric meant that Redknapp now controls arguably the best midfield in the league, whilst Bale is reproducing the form that saw him linked with clubs all over Europe. They're finally getting some use out of Ledley King, and Brad Friedel has ended Spurs' laughable goalkeeping problems. A traditional mid-season collapse is looking increasingly unlikely, at least in North London, but over in West London things are still shaky. When Chelsea beat City a couple of weeks ago there was talk of them having turned a corner. A premature assessment as it transpired, as this was followed by successive draws against mighty Wigan and awesome Fulham. The Blues once lauded defense looks creakier by the week and simply isn't cut out to playing the high line that Villas-Boas is so determined to use. Sturridge looks like a good prospect but Drogba and Torres have 4 league goals between them all season. Things could well come to a head at the Emirates on the 21st of April when Chelsea come to visit.

Meanwhile it was Wolves who entered the lions' den on Tuesday, but instead of a mauling they left with a point. The performance somewhat characterised Arsenal's attitude against weaker opposition in recent years. After grabbing an early goal through Gervinho, we became content to sit back and just wait for another to just materialise. Opportunities were created and squandered but the intensity that you see week in and week out from the teams in Manchester simply wasn't there. And so instead of doubling our advantage it was instead cancelled out when Steven Fletcher was on hand to head home from a couple of yards out after a blocked shot fell to him just outside the 6 yard box. Predictably the rest of the game was spent laying siege to the Wolves goal but to no avail, even after they had a player sent off (probably unfairly).

Nonetheless the ante was upped after it was too late. Granted Hennessey in the Wolves goal had a great game and more than once goalbound shots were only kept out by desperate lunges from defenders but the game should have been killed off in the first half.

Rumours abound that Thierry Henry has signed a two month loan deal - I'm not convinced either way that this is a good or bad idea. What I do know is that Henry was part of a team which knew how to put games to bed. This is a squad that's been crying out for an experienced head in the dressing room to instill some belief and know-how into a still relatively young squad - if he can leave his ego at the door then that's exactly what Thierry brings to the table.

QPR are our guests on Saturday and then we're off to Fulham on the 2nd - if we can win both these games then the congested Christmas period can be considered a success. Either way, compared to October, we're sitting pretty.

Traditionally calling an end to Arsenal's involvement in the title race after a mere seven games would be seen as premature - there has, in the past, been enough quality in the squad to retain the possibility of being crowned champions at the end of season, at least mathematically. There may still be 84 points up for grabs, but the likelihood of the Gunners picking up the 78 odd that they'd need to win this thing seems beyond improbable though. One glance at Sunday's team-sheet will tell you why. Injuries and the loss of 2 of the squad's best players have taken their toll, and now we're confronted by the stark reality of finishing outside the Champion's League places for the first time since 95. Pretty bleak, right?

Right. Bleaker still when one remembers that Jack Wilshere is out till next year and Bakary Sagna is now out for the next three months. Still, it's important to examine the positives:

1. Before Sunday Arsenal had won three straight games in all compeitions.
2. We've now played Spurs, United and Newcastle away and Liverpool at home.
3. It can't possibly get any worse than losing 8-2 at Old Trafford.
4. Spurs were expected to demolish Arsenal on the weekend when in fact it ended up being much more fiercely contested than that.

This bring me neatly on to yesterday's game. There's been a lot of talk of a power shift in North London for years now but the fact remains that Spurs haven't finished above Arsenal since the 94-95 season. That said, the Gunners have lost three of the last four and bragging rights definitely reside in Tottenham right now. Truth be told most Arsenal fans were expecting much worse from this game; Redknapp's current first team, as much as it pains me to admit it, is stronger than Wenger's: Bale, Adebayor and Modric are all Champion's League calibre players, and with a supporting cast like Parker, Van der Vaart and King, it seemed like all we could hope for was avoiding another thrashing.

This was made all the more likely by Wenger's continued defensive woes, reduced as he was to partnering Per Mertersacker with Alex Song at centre back, flanked by Gibbs and Sagna; the youngster Francis Coquelin deputised in defensive midfield, accompanied by Ramsey and Arteta further forward. Gervinho, Van Persie and Walcott completed the outfield. A decent side but hardly one expected to leave White Hart Lane with points. So it proved as first Van der Vaart gave them the lead with five minutes to go in the first half before Kyle Walker nullified Ramsey's equaliser to hand Redknapp a 2-1 win.

While a Spurs third looked likelier than an Arsenal equaliser, prior to the final ten minutes the game had been fairly level. Both sides exploited each others weaknesses: Arsenal used the numerical superiority of a three man midfield to build attacks patiently and dominate possesion while Tottenham looked to break downfield quickly and hit Arsenal on the counter. The problem with the Gunners trying a patient build up is that in the wake of Fabregas' departure, there's much less likelihood that someone in midfield will play that final killer ball to release one of the strikers. Ramsey is a solid passer but lacks incisiveness; Arteta has more cut and thrust about him but seems to lack the confidence to try and play with the amount of creativity expected of him, preferring to pass sideways and backwards over trying to pick holes in the opposition's defence. Subsequently they saw a lot of the ball had little to show for it. Gervinho had the chance of the half but he wastefully sidefooted wide after Van Persie's pull back and Walcott came close with a curling left shot, but Spurs looked more dangerous going forward and probably deserved their lead, even though Van der Vaart did handle whilst controlling the ball, and might have been sent off for his celebrtation.

Arsenal started the second half brightly and levelled the score when the marauding Alex Song whipped a low cross across the six yard box and for a while it looked like we might travel home with a point, until a a speculative drive from 25 odd yards swerved horribly to deceive Szczesny, who probably should have done better. There was to be no equaliser this time, and Arsenal now lie 15th with seven points from seven games.

What's to be done? Well not a whole lot now that the transfer window has shut. Vermaelen is slated to return after the international break and he'll add some much needed strength to the back line, which unfortunately will be cancelled out by the loss of Sagna for 3 months. Hopefully Arteta will grow into his role as de facto number 10 and continue build a relationship with Van Persie, and Gervinho should continue to adjust to the English game. Losing Robin would undoubtedly put paid to any notion we have of finishing in the top four but the Dutchman looks fit and healthy (thus far). Wenger must teach this side to win though - there's still an unshakeable fragility about them and it's up to the manager to instill some confidence into the squad.

Meanwhile Roberto Mancini continues to throw his petro-dollars around like an investment banker at a strip club - that analogy does a dis-service to strippers however, many of whom don't whore themselves out like erstwhile gooners Samir Nasri and Gael Clichy have. Now the Italian manager has been flashing his 'come-hither' stare at Van Persie, Arsenal's only top player left after the Italian spent the summer stripping the club of our other assets. Piss off Mancini. You have strikers coming out the ying yang, so many in fact, that you can release Craig Bellamy on a free - on a free Mancini - and loan Adebayor to a potential rival for Champion's League. Go away and gut the squad of some other once great team, you scarf-wearing disgrace to football.

So you remember football right? 22 men on a square patch of grass kicking a coloured sphere into nets while toga-clad spectators scream and bay for blood? Well apparently it's back, which is good news for everyone except Arsenal fans.

For those of us who are paid up members of Arsene Wenger's red and white army, it's been a mixed bag so far. First there was the disappointing and infuriating draw up in Newcastle, then the succesful but undeniably nervy win against Udinese, followed by last weekend's hard-luck loss to Liverpool. 1 scored, 2 conceded and 2 red cards. Hardly bursting out of the blocks are our lads from North London. Furthermore, we've seen the departure of one of the most creative and talented central midfielders in the league in Cesc Fabregas, and there remains the distinct possibility that one of last season's best players, Samir Nasri, will soon be off to Manchester City to join erstwhile first choice left back Gael Clichy. Who has arrived to replace two of the most important members of our squad (and Clichy) you ask? Why, 19 year old Costa Rican striker Joel Campbell of course, not to mention 18 year old winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and 19 year old right back Carl Jenkinson. The only summer signing thus far who is in a position to lay claim to a starting spot is Ivorian winger Gervinho, who arrived from French champions Lille for the princely sum of 12 million Euros.

What are the implications for the team of the loss of these high profile members from the squad? Well if the first few games are anything to go by, extensive. A midfield of Song, Ramsey and Rosicky (Wilshere is not yet fit to play) struggled to create anything at Newcastle, and the front three looked isolated. As the game progressed there was increasingly little movement in the centre of the field and players were consistently caught in possession simply because there was no one to pass to. Against Udinese it was much the same story: the same midfield started strongly but struggled to deal with a team who pressed them high up the pitch, and when Walcott scored after four minutes the game became an exercise in not conceding rather than adding to the lead.

In some respects the loss against Liverpool was actually the most promising. Defensively we were solid for most of the game, despite the youngster Jenkinson making his debut at right back while Sagna covered for the injured Gibbs on the left; Koscielny was also forced off with back spasms during the first half and was replaced by youngster Ignasi Miquel, but the Spaniard looked composed. Even more satisfyingly, Thomas Vermaelen, who might as well be a new signing considering the amount he played last season, had ponytailed ponce Andy Carroll safely tucked away in his pocket all game, dealing comfortably with countless balls played downfield or into the box. Excitable young midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, who was deputising for Alex Song (retrospective 3 game ban for his stamp on Joey 'I'll stub a cigar out on a youth team player's eye but if slapped will roll around on the floor like someone's thrown acid in my face' Barton) looked like solid cover and was playing well until his deserved red card in the second half.

Even more pleasingly Wenger took a gamble on starting Samir Nasri and it paid off - the wantaway Frenchman showed real impetus and desire in taking the game to Liverpool and prior to Frimpong's second booking it was Arsenal who seemed the more likely to score. The red card was undeniably a game changer though, and a Liverpool goal seemed increasingly inevitable; in the end it was Aaron Ramsey who put the ball into the goal, albeit the wrong one, and the game was sewn up when Luis Suarez turned the ball into an unguarded net shortly afterwards.

It was a game which Arsenal probably didn't deserve to lose and while the pressure continues to mount on Wenger, we hope he'll feel buoyed by what he saw, and indeed heard; the only deregotory chant directed at him during the game was quickly drowned out by the rest of the stadium, and a few big signings before the transfer window snaps shut will at least convince doubters that the manager is doing everything he can to keep the team competitive. A creative central midfielder is a must, and whilst the central defensive pairing of Vermaelen and Koscielny looks solid, cover in the shape of the injured Djourou and the walking liability that is Sebastian Squirrelaci is insufficent, so a centre back should probably be on the shopping list. If Bendtner goes too then a decent striker (preferably one over 20 years old) will be needed. Above all Arsenal could use a player with a bit of experience in high-pressure situations, a calm head to counter balance the exuberance of youth.

Arsenal travel to Udinese on Wednesday to fight for their right to party in the premier European club competition this season; Gervinho and Song, both serving bans in domestic competitons will at least be fit, whilst Van Persie will return from his suspension left over from last season. The main point of interest will be Nasri; the way it's shaping up, if he plays, he's staying, no longer eligible to appear in Europe for his prospective pay-masters, Manchester City; if he's benched, the deal's probably still on. Watch this space.